Chinese cities see property prices fall

Beijing, July 18 (IANS) More Chinese cities have reported lower or unchanged property prices in June, which suggests that the government’s cooling measures have begun to work, authorities said Monday.

Twenty-six cities out of a statistical pool of 70 major cities saw new home prices decline or remain unchanged from a month earlier, compared to 20 cities in May, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in a report posted on its website.

While most other cities reported higher prices, 24 of them said that price growth slowed in June.

Housing prices have generally stabilised, but analysts have warned that the government’s regulatory measures should remain in place, as some cities are still facing price hikes and other problems as they continue to build more affordable housing units.

The government has adopted various measures to cool the property market and curb rising prices, including restricting residents in major cities from buying second or third homes, requiring higher down payments for mortgages and instituting new property taxes in the cities of Chongqing and Shanghai.